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September 27, 2017 The Skanner MINORITY BUSINESS ENTERPRISE EDITION Page 9 MBE 2017 Special Business Edition Small Companies Make Biggest Gains as US Stocks Rise Smaller, domestically-focused banks and tech and industrial firms made especially large gains By MARLEY JAY AP Markets Writer NEW YORK— U.S. stocks climbed Wednes- day as smaller compa- nies soared following a report that showed busi- ness investment climbed in August. Investors also hoped stocks will benefit from tax cuts proposed by President Donald Trump and congressio- nal Republicans. The Labor Department said orders for long-last- ing manufactured goods rose, and a gauge of busi- ness investment climbed for the second month in a row. Investors hope that means U.S. manufactur- ing is getting stronger as the global economy con- tinues to improve, and they bet on continued growth: technology com- panies rallied for a sec- ond day, while the prices of traditionally safe in- vestments like bonds and gold dropped. “We’ve been wait- ing for that,” said Kate Warne, an investment strategist for Edward Jones, of the recent im- provement. “Business spending has been rela- tively weak,” with spend- ing by consumers keep- ing the economy afloat. Smaller, domestical- ly-focused banks and technology and industri- al firms made especially large gains, and the Rus- sell 2000 index of small- er-company stocks made its biggest gain since March. The tax proposal was similar to what in- vestors had come to ex- pect, and with months of negotiations likely ahead and key details missing, it’s not clear what kind of plan might ultimate- ly pass. But lower cor- porate taxes could help smaller companies more than large ones. “A corporate tax cut tends to be better news for smaller companies because they don’t have as many ways to re- duce their tax rate,” said Warne. The proposal would cut tax rates for individ- uals and corporations. It would lower the top cor- porate tax rate to 25 per- cent from its current 35 percent, and also reduces the number of personal tax brackets and near- ly doubles the standard deduction used by most Americans. The Standard & Poor’s 500 index added 10.20 points, or 0.4 percent, to 2,507.04. The Dow Jones industrial average rose 56.39 points, or 0.3 per- cent, to 22,340.71. The Nasdaq composite leaped 73.10 points, or 1.1 per- cent, to 6,453.26. The Russell 2000 did even better and con- tinued to set records. It gained 27.95 points, or 1.9 percent, to 1,484.81. After a sluggish few months, the Russell has jumped more than 9 per- cent since mid-August. The S&P mid-cap and small-cap indexes also climbed. The Labor Depart- ment’s report gave in- vestors hope the econ- “ Utility company Scana took its biggest loss in almost nine years after state police in South Car- olina said they are look- ing into “potential crim- inality” by the company after a nuclear plant con- struction project was shut down after some $10 billion had already been spent. Its South Carolina Electric & Gas unit and partner Santee Cooper canceled the project in July after contractor Westinghouse filed for A corporate tax cut tends to be better news for small- er companies because they don’t have as many ways to reduce their tax rate omy will keep growing, and Wall Street bet that interest rates will keep rising. The yield on the 10-year Treasury note climbed to 2.30 percent from 2.24 percent. That helped banks, as higher interest rates mean they can charge more to lend money. Bank of Ameri- ca picked up 60 cents, or 2.4 percent, to $25.41 and Citigroup rose $1.34, or 1.9 percent, to $72.28. Meanwhile companies that pay big dividends took steep losses. Kimco Realty, a real estate in- vestment trust that owns outdoor shopping cen- ters, fell 75 cents, or 3.7 percent, to $19.41. House- hold products maker Procter & Gamble gave up $1.78, or 1.9 percent, to $90.87. Rising bond yields made government bonds a more appealing investment to investors seeking income. The dollar got stron- ger and rose to 112.75 yen from 112.17 yen. The euro fell to $1.1756 from $1.1798. Chipmaker Micron Technology had a better quarter than investors expected, and its stock rose $2.81, or 8.5 per- cent, to $37.09. Facebook climbed $3.47, or 2.1 percent, to $167.68 and Google’s parent compa- ny Alphabet picked up $22.47, or 2.4 percent, to $959.90. Shoe and athletic gear maker Nike said sales in the U.S. remained weak in its first fiscal quarter and steep discounts con- tinued to affect its busi- ness. While its earnings and revenue were better than analysts expected, analysts chalked much of that up to lower taxes, stock repurchases, and spending cuts. Nike lost $1.03, or 1.9 percent, to $52.67. bankruptcy. Scana said it will co- operate fully with the inquiry. Its stock sank $4.35, or 7.8 percent, to a two-year low of $51.22. Gold fell to its lowest U.S. stocks are jumping along with bond yields and interest rates early Wednesday, Sept. 27, 2017, and technology companies continue to recover some of their recent losses. Athletic gear giant Nike is falling as investors are concerned about the health of its U.S. business. (AP Photo/Mark Lennihan, File) in a month. The metal’s price declined $13.90, or 1.1 percent, to $1,287.80 an ounce. Two weeks ago gold was at a 12-month high, but it’s fallen sharp- ly since then. Silver lost 6 cents to $16.83 an ounce. Copper rose 1 cent to $2.93 a pound. Benchmark U.S. crude added 26 cents to $52.14 a barrel in New York while Brent crude, the stan- dard for international oil prices, fell 54 cents, to $57.90 a barrel in Lon- don. Wholesale gasoline fell 4 cents to $1.65 a gallon. Heating oil remained at $1.85 a gallon. Natural gas rose 6 cents to $2.97 per 1,000 cubic feet. The FTSE 100 index in Britain rose 0.4 percent while Germany’s DAX rose 0.4 percent. The CAC 40 in France added 0.3 percent. Japan’s Nik- kei 225 fell 0.3 percent and South Korea’s Kospi dipped less than 0.1 per- cent. Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index rose 0.5 per- cent.
